Here are 7 foods that you will pay more for in the New Year
Digital Reporter
Friday, December 11, 2015, 2:36 PM - Canadians will have to pay more at the grocery checkout in 2016, according to a recent study.
The research published by the University of Guelph Food Institute forecasts food inflation rates across the country will be anywhere between two to four per cent, exceeding the general inflation rate measured by Statistics Canada's consumer price index.
This comes after a year in which the struggling Canadian dollar led to a price hike for many products including, meat, vegetables, fruit and nuts.
El Nino's impact on the climate, currency drop and several major consumer trends will all play significant factors in the price of food, the study notes. The average Canadian household could spend up to $345 more on food in 2016.
"The biggest factor could be the Canadian dollar. For every cent the dollar drops, foods that are imported likely increase one per cent or more. For fruits and vegetables, unlike with meats, it's more challenging to find substitutes in Canada, so shoppers will have to cope with higher prices," said University of Guelph professor Sylvain Charlebois, lead author of the study in a press release.
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The sudden drop in currency resulted in a nine to 10 per cent increase in price for fruits, vegetables and nuts in 2015 and researchers anticipate that those prices could increase in the New Year by up to 4.5 per cent.
"Canada is the only industrialized country where you find the food inflation rate to be above 2.5 per cent. That's significant. Right now we are sitting at 4.1 per cent," Charlebois told CBC News. "Europe food inflation's barely at one per cent. There's too much food in the market. The U.S. inflation rate is much lower than ours. The currency clearly is not helping families that are in need of affordable foods."
Although the drought in California bumped up the price of fruit and vegetables in 2015, one potential improvement for the New Year is more rain in the forecast for United States due to the effects of El Nino, explains Charlebois. This could help restore crops in the southwest, helping to keep the prices down.
"This could mean more supply from those states where farmers had struggled in recent years. It could also help U.S. cattle and pork producers, though inventories will take some time to rebuild."
Consumer trends such as supply chain transparency, animal welfare and protein alternatives could have an effect on food production in 2016, the study suggests. As a result of higher meat prices, shoppers have turned to lentils and chickpeas instead.
"People want to know what is in their food and the animal welfare conditions. Social media facilitates consumers' influence, and companies have noticed. For example, McDonald's is focusing more on animal welfare. One current trend is the demand to use less antibiotics in animals."
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